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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wound · ruler · cell · game · last · press · pitcher · fan

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. game — a match
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. last — to go on
  10. press — newspapers
  11. press — to push
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. last — final
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cell — in biology
  19. wound — an injury
  20. press — a publisher
  21. cell — a phone
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. game — wild animals

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com